Breath mark

A breath mark or luftpause is a symbol used in musical notation. It directs the performer of the music passage to take a breath (for wind instruments and vocalists) or to make a slight pause (for other instruments). This pause is normally intended to shorten the duration of the preceding note and not to alter the tempo; in this function it can be thought of as a grace rest. It is usually placed above the staff and at the ends of phrases.

This article may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. (January 2025)

The breath mark is visually similar to a comma.

A common misconception is that breath marks indicate a bow lift to bowed string instruments; however, it actually represents that the musician gets a “breath” of time while they are playing.